I'm back....

So I took a little vacation from the blogging world.... ok, maybe more like a 1 year sabbatical. Anyhow, Mike has insprired me to start this thing up again, so here we go. Maybe he'll post comments to mine as much as I do to his.

So we've collectively been sent down this "7 things about me" path. I think I'm as facinated by watching the friendship links unfold as I am by the facts revealed. (Am I remembering right that Beth tagged Sarah who tagged Amity who tagged Mike who indirectly tagged me? How fun that I know all these people, although some better than others.) I also checked Mike's link to Chad, whose friends thought 50 things was way cooler than a measly 7. Must be the difference between city and country life.

So here are 7 things about me that might not be well known. Since I'm not known for keeping things to myself, there is a chance that none of this is news.

1. My best friend in first grade was a boy named Mike who had mild CP. He used to "mess up my hair". This was 1976, so the Children witih Disabilities Act was newly enacted. As I remember it, we hung out together every day. I cannot remember any other friends from school in Hampden, at all. We moved at the end of my second grade year, and I have no idea where Mike ended up. In high school, when I was realizing that special education was the place for me, I suddenly remembered my old friend. That friendship helped solidify my college path. While I'm no longer technically in education, I'm still hanging out on the fringes. I guess I'm happier there. (Thanks, Mike.)

2. I used to steal sips of my mom's Coke on a regular basis. I came by my addiction naturally: she always had a 2 liter bottle on the counter, in the corner by the sink. I was probably in fifth grade when I figured out I could steal a sip or two and she wouldn't notice. I've never asked her if she did.

3. I remember the day I decided to no longer see the world in black and white. I was talking to my dad in the basement (he still smoked then, and mom wouldn't let him upstairs when he did. We spent a lot of Friday nights talking in the basement while he drank manhattans and smoked Lucky Strikes.) He described me as a black and white person, and gave me a few examples. I decided gray was a pretty cool color, too, and think that shift in thinking has served me well.

4. I have more close girlfriends now than I ever did as a kid. I much prefered the company of boys my own age, or adults and young children.

5. I hate playing board games. I don't know why, but I do. Sometimes Scrabble is fun, but I always end up feeling stupid because I can't spell to save my soul. The only game I've ever really loved is Trivial Persuit. It's the one game we don't own.

6. I have a hard time leaving a major venue with everyone else. I am constantly feeling the need to turn around and swim upstream. I really hate being a follower, even when it's the most logical thing to do.

7. My whole childhood I swore I'd never live in a mill town, I'd never have a Christmas baby, and I'd never have 3 kids. My lifetime average should remain .334.

Thanks for the inspiration, buddy. That's what friends are for.
:)